Acrylic mailbox housing

ABSTRACT

A mailbox housing and support device and a method for forming. A sheet of acrylic is heated to make it formable and stretched over a male mold to create a housing and support for a stand alone mailbox. The high gloss finish and aesthetically pleasing side of the acrylic is external as a result of the thermoforming of the acrylic sheet over a male mold and the application of a vacuum within the male mold and to bring the heated sheet into tight engagement therewith. Slight angling of the upstanding walls of the male mold allows it to be easily extracted after cooling down of the acrylic sheet. Another embodiment of the present invention incorporates a bulbous upper portion that uses shaping forms that are easily detached from the male mold upon withdrawal of the mold.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

[0001] A decorative device for housing and supporting a stand alonemailbox that is formed from a thermoformable sheet of acrylic, and therelated method for forming, encloses and protects the mailbox andsupports the mailbox above ground level.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

[0002] The provisions for delivery of mail in the United States differswidely from house to house and neighborhood to neighborhood.Specifically, mailboxes take many different forms, from multiple boxenclosures in large apartment complexes, to stand alone individualmailboxes mounted along a street or road in rural areas. The shift ofthe population from urban to suburban living has also resulted in anincreased use of stand alone mailboxes, particularly in suburbs andneighborhoods in which set back requirements mandate that the houses bea certain distance from the street. Locating a mailbox near the streetor road, rather than on or adjacent the house itself, is popular in suchcommunities not only with the postal carriers because the distances anddifficulties in delivering mail are diminished, in addition to theelimination of the need to deal with barking dogs, but stand alonemailboxes are also popular with the homeowner who does not have toconcern himself or worry about intrusion by the postal carrier or thesafety of the postal carrier while on the property.

[0003] Prior attempts at improving stand alone mailboxes and relatedhousings and supports have addressed both structural and aestheticconsiderations. Structural problems with stand alone mailboxes includethe deterioration of materials used therein when exposed to outsideweather and the elements. For example, stand alone mailboxes and supportposts constructed from wood are subject to the rotting of the woodenposts and/or the mailboxes themselves due to exposure to moisture or totermites. Replacement and repair of the mailboxes is a regular andexpected chore for homeowners with stand alone mailboxes constructedfrom wood. On the other hand, stand alone mailboxes constructed frommetals such as iron, steel or aluminum are subject to oxidation andrusting, which affect them both structurally and aesthetically and alsonecessitates frequent repair and replacement. The recognition in theprior art of the maintenance and repair drawbacks of mailboxesconstructed from wood or metal led to the development of mailboxes andsupport structures that are not constructed from wood or metal. One suchsolution is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 5,806,758 to Erwin et al.,wherein the use of a plastic encased mailbox post is disclosed to solvethe problems of exposure to the elements. In U.S. Pat. No. 4,875,622 toLents, on the other hand, a stand alone mailbox housing is disclosedwherein a faux brick visual appearance is constructed from coatingsapplied to a foam filled housing.

[0004] While stand alone wood and iron mailboxes and related housingsand supports have the disadvantage of being prone to deterioration overtime, other mailbox housings and supports constructed from brick orstone have the disadvantages of being very expensive to construct andthey are not easily movable. From a safety standpoint, mailbox housingsconstructed from stone or brick present an added risk to drivers thatveer off the road because, rather than hitting a mailbox on a post thatdamages the car and the mailbox, the driver of a car striking a brick orstone mailbox housing is much more likely to be seriously injured orkilled.

[0005] Aesthetically, there have been many prior art attempts anddevices for improving the appearance of the mailbox, and some prior artdevices have addressed the appearance of housings and support devicesfor mailboxes. The aforementioned U.S. Pat. No. 4,875,622 to Lentsdiscloses the use of faux brick, constructed from styrofoam and multiplecoatings thereon, to emulate the expensive and immobile stand alonemailbox housings referred to above. The Lents device has the advantagesof being lightweight, and thus safer, and of being more resilient to theelements and less expensive to manufacture than the actual brickhousing. However, the formation of the Lents device is a complicatedmultiple step process that takes several days to complete and involvesmultiple applications of coatings and modifications thereto. The housingdisclosed in the Lents patent emulates the roughish exterior of a brickconstruction.

[0006] A number of prior art disclosures address improvements for theappearance of the mailboxes themselves. U.S. Pat. No. 5,984,172 toEasterwood discloses an ornamental and protective cover for a mailboxthat includes provisions for decorative indicia thereon. U.S. Pat. No.5,575,422 to Peterman discloses the use of an extruded mailbox to combatvandalism. U.S. Pat. No. 5,435,483 to Cox teaches the use of a rubberjacket to encase a stand alone mailbox and protect it from the elements.U.S. Pat. No. 5,346,125 to Critzer discloses the use of removabledecorative panels for a mailbox. U.S. Pat. No. 5,054,685 teaches the useof decorative cladding for mailboxes, and U.S. Pat. No. 5,035,356 toGranger discloses a natural wood covering for outdoor mailboxes.

[0007] None of the prior art devices provide for a stand alone mailboxhousing or method for constructing a housing from acrylic or any otherthermoformable plastic. The benefits of such a housing and the processfor constructing such will be evident, as set forth in more detailbelow, but specifically include reduced cost and an easier process ofmanufacturing a mailbox housing that results in a mailbox housing withimproved aesthetic characteristics not achieved by any of the prior artdevices.

OBJECTS OF THE INVENTION

[0008] It is an object of the present invention to provide anaesthetically pleasing housing and support device for a stand alonemailbox.

[0009] It is another object of the present invention to provide alightweight stand alone mailbox housing and support device that is alsoweather resistant.

[0010] It is a further object of the present invention to provide astand alone mailbox housing that is relatively easily moved and does notpresent a safety hazard to operators of vehicles.

[0011] It is yet another object of the present invention to provide astand alone mailbox housing and support device that is easy andinexpensive to manufacture.

[0012] It is a further object of the present invention to provide amethod for manufacturing a stand alone mailbox housing and supportdevice from thermoformable sheet material that provides an improvedaesthetic appearance of a high gloss exterior.

[0013] It is a further object of the present invention to provide amethod for manufacturing a stand alone mailbox housing and supportdevice that utilizes a male mold and the application of a heated sheetof acrylic thereto.

[0014] It is yet another object of the present invention to provide ahousing and support device for a stand alone mailbox with a high glossexterior surface and a bulbous head formed from a sheet ofthermoformable material.

[0015] It is another object of the present invention to provide a methodfor manufacturing a mailbox housing and support device having a highgloss exterior surface and a bulbous head by providing a male moldhaving accommodations for retraction of the mold that allow the finishedexterior surface to remain untouched so that a high gloss exteriorfinish is created.

[0016] These and other objects and advantages of the present inventionwill be apparent from a review of the following specification andaccompanying drawings.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

[0017] The present invention is a mailbox housing and support devicethat has a high gloss finished exterior surface. The housing includes areceptacle that is appropriately sized to receive and support a standardmailbox. The housing is relatively lightweight, and may be easily moved,and includes provisions for being secured to the ground. In the mostpreferred embodiment, those securing provisions comprise a lower rimaffixed to the housing that includes apertures therein that may beengaged by stakes or mounting bolts to secure the housing, and mailbox,in place.

[0018] The high gloss finished exterior surface of the housing of thepresent invention is achieved, in the most preferred embodiment, throughthe use of a thermoformable sheet of acrylic. The acrylic is heated andstretched over an upstanding, generally vertical male mold. Air isremoved from between the male mold and the acrylic sheet to bring theacrylic sheet into tight engagement with the male mold, after whichsheet is permitted to cool down and the male mold retracted. The sheetis then trimmed to provide the lower rim and to provide the aperture toaccommodate the mailbox.

[0019] In another preferred embodiment of the present invention, amailbox housing having a bulbous upper head is provided that furtherincludes a high gloss finished exterior surface and a receptacle forreceiving a standard mailbox. The bulbous head mailbox housing alsoincludes a lower rim that provides means for securing the housing to theground through the use of stakes or bolts.

[0020] A method for forming a mailbox housing from a sheet ofthermoformable acrylic is provided wherein the sheet of acrylic ispositioned and held in a rigid frame. The acrylic sheet is heated andlowered onto a male mold which is hollow and has a vacuum meansremovably affixed thereto. When the sheet has been stretched to engagethe lower rim of the male mold, sealing air pockets between the acrylicsheet and the male mold, the vacuum is activated to withdraw air frombetween the acrylic sheet and the male mold to draw the sheet into tightengagement with the mold. The sheet is then cooled down, the mold isretracted and the final cutting modifications made to produce a mailboxhousing having a lower rim and an aperture to accommodate a standardmailbox.

[0021] An alternative method is provided in accordance with theprovisions of the present invention wherein a male mold is providedhaving shaper blocks affixed thereto to create a housing having abulbous head. Prior to retraction of the mold from the cooled housing,the pins are retracted to disengage the upright, substantially verticalportions of the male mold from the shaper blocks to allow withdrawalwithout contacting the interior surface of the housing. Alternatively toretracting the pins to allow removal of the male mold, shaper blocks areprovided that are formed from an easily cut substance, such asstyrofoam. Withdrawal of the male mold proceeds without retraction ofthe pins. Instead, the pins cut through the easily cut substance as themale mold is withdrawn from the cooled housing.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0022]FIG. 1 is a perspective view of the stand alone mailbox housingand support structure of the present invention.

[0023]FIG. 2 is a perspective view of a heated acrylic sheet in a frameand a male mold with vacuum apertures therein prior to application ofthe sheet to the mold.

[0024]FIG. 3A is a sectional front view of a sheet of heated acrylic tobe lowered and applied to a male mold.

[0025]FIG. 3B is a sectional front view of a sheet of acrylic afterlowering of the holding frame onto and stretching of the acrylic toconform with the general shape of the male mold.

[0026]FIG. 3C is a sectional front view after application of a vacuumwithin the male mold to pull the acrylic sheet into tight engagementwith the male mold.

[0027]FIG. 3D is a front view of the stand alone mailbox housing andsupport device showing the cut points for final modification of thefinished product after cooling of the acrylic and retraction of the malemold.

[0028]FIG. 4 is a perspective view of the stand alone mailbox housingand support device of the present invention having a bulbous head.

[0029]FIG. 5 is a perspective view of the male mold used in forming thestand alone mailbox housing support device of the present inventionhaving a bulbous head and appropriately positioned vacuum apertures.

[0030]FIG. 6A is a sectional front view of a heated acrylic sheet justprior to lowering onto a male mold having a bulbous head in accordancewith the present invention.

[0031]FIG. 6B is a sectional front view of a heated acrylic sheet afterthe lowering of the holding frame over the male mold with a bulboushead.

[0032]FIG. 6C is a sectional front view of a heated acrylic sheet afterapplication of a vacuum to draw the acrylic sheet into tight engagementwith the male mold having a bulbous head.

[0033]FIG. 6D is a front view of the stand alone mailbox housing andsupport device reflecting retention of the bulb shapers and the locationof the mailbox therein.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0034] The presence and necessity of stand alone mailboxes, particularlyin rural and suburban areas where residences are significant distancesfrom the road, are well known. The present invention is directed toproviding an improved device for housing and supporting such stand alonemailboxes, and a related method for the manufacturing of such.

[0035] A mailbox housing 10, shown in FIG. 1, comprises one preferredembodiment of the present invention. The housing 10 is generally anupstanding rectangle having four substantially vertical upstanding walls11A, 11B, 11C and 11D and a top 13 and a uniform high gloss exteriorfinished surface 12 over the entire generally upstanding rectangularshape.

[0036] The housing 10 is formed and constructed from a single sheet ofthermoformable material. In the most preferred embodiment of the presentinvention, a sheet of acrylic 14 is used that is heated and stretchedover a male mold 16, subsequently subjected to a vacuum pulled withinthe male mold 16 to bring the acrylic into tight engagement with themold 16 and then cooled. The male mold 16 is then retracted and theacrylic 14 is cut and trimmed to arrive at the final form depicted inFIG. 1. While the present invention discloses the use of thermoformableacrylic, uses of other materials with similar thermoformable andexterior finish characteristics are contemplated and do not depart fromthe principles of the present invention.

[0037] The acrylic housing 10 accommodates and supports a standardmailbox 18, as shown in FIG. 1, in an aperture 20 that is cut into thehousing 10 after cooling down, as illustrated in FIG. 3D. The acrylichousing 10 has a number of advantages over the prior art stand alonemailbox housing and support structures. First, as a result of beingformed from an acrylic sheet 14 stretched over a male mold 16, theexterior surface 12 will be a high gloss polished finish that needs nofurther buffing, waxing or treatment. In this respect the process issimilar to that for forming the interior of hot tubs, well known in theprior art, except that the decorative finished surface is external, orconvex, in this case, but internal, or concave, in the formation of hottub interior linings. The various well-known design options of color andcolor mixing utilized in the formation of hot tub interiors will thus beavailable to be applied to the mailbox housing 10 of the presentinvention.

[0038] A lower rim 22 is formed at the base of the housing 10 during theheating, stretching, cooling and cutting process of fabricating thehousing 10 from the acrylic sheet 12. The lower rim 22 is advantageousfor two reasons. First, it adds adds stability to the housing 10, makingit less apt to be turned or blown over. Second, the lower rim 22 alsoprovides a means for attaching and securing the housing 10 to the groundthrough the use of mounting bolts or stakes at bolt-hole apertures 25A,25B, 25C and 25D, which secure and stabilize the housing 10 to theground near a road or street.

[0039] The housing 10 is lightweight, as a result of being formed from asingle acrylic sheet 14, and thus is more easily moved, handled andinstalled than housings constructed from wood, metal, bricks or stone.In addition, the acrylic housing 10 is not subject to corrosion ordegradation, unlike wood which is subject to rotting, splitting andtermite infestation, or iron, steel, aluminum or other metals which aresubject to rust and oxidation when exposed to the elements. The use of asheet of thermoformable acrylic 14 is specifically contemplated becauseit retains a high gloss, polished exterior finish insofar as it does notreact to or with water or other external weather conditions. Thus, thelife and aesthetic appearance of the stand alone mailbox housing 10 ofthe present invention are extended compared to the prior art.

[0040] Besides easing the moving and mounting requirements, thelightweight nature of the acrylic mailbox housing 10 has the additionalbenefit that the housing 10 will give way to a wayward vehicle to a muchgreater extent than a stand alone mailbox housing constructed from brickor stone. In this way, the risk of injury and/or death to the operatorand occupants of a vehicle that strikes the stand alone mailbox housing10 of the present invention is diminished compared to stand alonemailbox housings constructed from brick or stone.

[0041] As shown in FIG. 2, the acrylic housing 10 begins with a sheet ofacrylic 14 which is heated and held in a holding frame 24. The frame 24comprises an upper clamp 26 and a lower clamp 28 between which theacrylic sheet 14 is held. The frame 24 is appropriately sized for themale mold 16 so that it just has clearance over a lower rim 30 locatedat and affixed to the bottom of the male mold 16. The slight angling ofthe upstanding walls 11A, 11B, 11C and 11D allow the acrylic sheet 14 tobe completely stretched over the male mold 16 in such a way that an airtight seal is formed around the perimeter of the male mold lower rim 30(FIG. 2).

[0042] The heated acrylic sheet 14 is lowered over the male mold 16, asrepresented by the sectional view in FIGS. 3A-D, until the acrylic sheet14 is sealed around the perimeter of the lower rim 30 (see FIG. 3B).

[0043] As shown in FIG. 2, the male mold 16 has a number of vacuumapertures 34 near the inner portion of the male mold lower rim 30. Thelocation of the vacuum apertures 34 is critical because, once theacrylic sheet 14 has been lowered over the male mold 16 so that it issealed around the perimeter of the lower rim 30, a means for bringingthe sheet 14 into tight engagement with the male mold 16, comprising avacuum pump 32, is actuated that withdraws all air from between theacrylic sheet 14 and the male mold 16 to bring the acrylic sheet 14 intotight engagement with, and to assume the shape of, the male mold 16.Specifically, the pockets 38, 40 are removed as illustrated in FIG. 3B,by removing air from the pockets 38, 40 through the withdrawal of airthrough the apertures 34. The vacuum pump 32 communicates with theinterior of the hollow male mold 16 through air-tight, sealed ductwork36 that is removably affixed to the underside of the male mold 16 asshown in FIG. 3B. The air is removed from the pockets 38, 40 and throughthe ductwork 36 by the vacuum pump 32 as indicated by the directionalarrows in FIG. 3B.

[0044] After the heating of the acrylic sheet 14, application to themale mold 16 and withdrawal of air between the sheet 14 and mold 16, theshaped acrylic sheet 14 cools down. Next, the sheet 14 is cut to removeexcess length at cut-points 42,44 as shown in FIG. 3D, to define thelower lip 22 of the housing 10. In addition, final cutting modificationsinclude the cutting of the aperture 20 into the housing 10 toaccommodate a mailbox 18.

[0045] In another preferred embodiment of the present invention, amailbox housing 50 having a bulbous head 52 is formed from athermoformable sheet, preferably acrylic, similarly to that discussedabove with a heated sheet of acrylic 56 sandwiched in a frame 58comprising an upper clamp 60 and a lower clamp 62 as shown in FIG. 5. Asshown in FIGS. 6A-6C, the frame 58 is lowered over the male mold 64until the acrylic is sealed around the lower perimeter 66 of the malemold 64.

[0046] After the heated sheet 56 is stretched over the male mold 64 andsealed around the lower perimeter 66, the sheet 56 is drawn into tightengagement with the male mold 64 by removing air from pockets 69, 71through the vacuum apertures 67, 68 (see FIGS. 5 and 6B). A vacuumblower 73 communicates with the interior of the mold 64, which ishollow, through ductwork 75, that is removably affixed to the bottom ofthe mold 64 as shown in FIG. 6B. The acrylic sheet 56 conforms to theshape of the male mold 64, including two shaper blocks 70,72, defining abulbous head, which are affixed to upper portions 82,84 of laterallyopposed sides 83, 85 of the male mold 64. Prior to the lowering of thesheet 56 onto the mold 64, the shaper blocks 70,72 are affixed to thelaterally opposed mold sides upper portions 82, 84 by pins 74,76,78,80as shown in FIG. 6A. After the acrylic sheet 56 is heated, held in theframe 58 and stretched over the mold 64 and cooled down, the male mold64 is retracted without the shaper blocks 70, 72 as shown in FIG. 6C. Inthe most preferred embodiment of the present invention, the shaperblocks 70,72 are formed from styrofoam or some other suitable easily cutsubstance that allow the pins 74,76,78,80 to rip through the shaperblocks 70, 72 during extraction of the male mold 64, including the upperportions 82,84 to which the shaper blocks 70,72 are attached, as shownin FIG. 6C. In an alternative embodiment, the vacuum 73 and ductwork 75are disengaged from the male mold 64 to provide access to its hollowinterior, and the pins 74,76,78,80 are retracted so that they do notbind the upper portions 82,84 of the male mold 64 to the shaper blocks70,72. In both embodiments, the pins 74, 76, 78, 80 provide a means forremoving the male mold 64 after the housing 50 has been formed from theheated sheet 56 and cooled down. The gradual angling, or draft, of thesides 83, 85 of the male mold 64, similar to the draft of the male mold16 discussed supra, allows easy removal after the acrylic sheet 56 hasbeen brought into tight engagement with the male mold 64 and cooleddown. In addition, though, the gradual angling of the male mold 64 alsoallows removal of the male mold 64 after cooling down of the acrylicsheet 56 because the pins 74,76,78,80 even when left in place, as shownin FIG. 6C, do not damage or contact the interior surface of the standalone mailbox housing 50. The pins 74, 76, 78, 80 clear the innermostpoints 88, 90 of the housing 50, as shown in FIG. 6C, upon removal ofmold 64.

[0047] After cooling down of the acrylic sheet 56 and removal of themale mold 64, the final step in the manufacturing of the acrylic mailboxhousing 50 is to cut off the excess acrylic, shown in sectional viewFIG. 6C at points 92, 94 to provide a lower lip 86 and to cut anaperture 80 into an upper portion thereof to accommodate a mailbox 91.

[0048] The foregoing description of a preferred embodiment of theinvention has been presented for purposes of illustration anddescription. It is not intended to be exhaustive or to limit theinvention to the precise form disclosed. Obvious modifications orvariations are possible in light of the above teachings. The embodimentwas chosen and described in order to best illustrate the principles ofthe invention and its practical application to thereby enable one ofordinary skill in the art to best utilize the invention in variousembodiments and with various modifications as are suited to theparticular use contemplated. It is intended that the scope of theinvention be defined by the claims appended hereto.

I claim:
 1. A mailbox housing and support device comprising: a highgloss finished exterior surface; and a receptacle for receiving astandard mailbox.
 2. The mailbox housing and support device as set forthin claim 1 further comprising means for securing to the ground.
 3. Themailbox housing and support device as set forth in claim 2 wherein saidhigh gloss finish exterior surface comprises an outer surface of a sheetof thermoformable material that is stretched over a male mold.
 4. Themailbox housing and support device as set forth in claim 3 wherein saidsecuring means comprises a lower rim affixed to said housing havingapertures therein.
 5. A method for forming a mailbox housing and supportdevice comprising the steps of: providing a sheet of thermoformableacrylic; holding said sheet of thermoformable acrylic in a frame;heating said sheet of thermoformable acrylic; lowering said heated sheetof thermoformable acrylic over a male mold having internal vacuum meansuntil said sheet has completely engaged and sealed around a perimeter ofa lower lip of said male mold; evacuating air from between said sheet ofacrylic and said male mold to bring said sheet of acrylic into tightengagement with said male mold.